Jealousy at TAC

by Richard Pinkerton

  * * *

  Vanessa couldn’t help but feel irked at the way Nadia was trying to monopolise Rex’s time. She didn’t know why it bothered her so much, because she really did have total confidence in hers and Rex’s relationship. Nevertheless, there was something about Nadia. Maybe it had something to do with her being a family member. There was always that concern that maybe Nadia had that same special something she herself had and that maybe Rex might not be able to resist it.

  She couldn’t help but continue to glance at Nadia as she nibbled on Rex’s ear. Vanessa really wanted to get away from Shawn. It was so obvious to her and probably Rex and Nadia that he was hitting on her. Maggie however was too naïve to realise it. Vanessa wanted her to know, but she didn’t know whether she had the heart or the guts to tell her. What if she was simply misreading Shawn?

  Not only did Vanessa want to escape Shawn, she also wanted to get Rex away from Nadia for a bit, just to show her that he was her guy foremost and also to send a clear message to Shawn that she wasn’t interested in him. It bothered her that Nadia was so intent on competing against her. For a long-lost sister to do that seemed wrong to Vanessa, even though she hadn’t discouraged Nadia in anyway.

  ‘Maggie. Do you mind if I take your mat?’ She asked.

  ‘No, go ahead.’ Maggie slid off it and pushed it over to her.

  ‘Rex, wanna come for a float?’ Vanessa asked.

  ‘Sure.’ Rex turned and smiled at Nadia. ‘Bye for now.’

  Vanessa noticed Nadia’s eyes narrow as Rex propelled himself towards the mat. It was wide enough for them both to lean over the top and kick off along the water.

  ‘Do you think we can both lie on this at the same time?’ she asked.

  ‘I guess we could try.’

  For the next few minutes they had fun seeing if they could both lie together lengthways on the mat, most of the time falling into the water together, in each other’s arms. Finally after many failed attempts and much laughter, they manage to position themselves with Rex underneath and her lying half on top of him. The mat was very buoyant and it easily held their combined weight.

  ‘Now this, I like,’ Rex said, staring up into her eyes.

  ‘So do I,’ Vanessa said and she began to kiss him. Out of the corner of her eye she could see both Nadia and Shawn watching. Neither of them looked impressed.

  It wasn’t long before the waves started up, so they both had to slip back down into the water and ride widthways, side by side. As the undulating waves lifted them up and down Vanessa finally had a chance to talk to him. ‘I’m worried about Shawn.’

  ‘Yeah. Me too. Well actually I’m more worried about Maggs. She obviously has no clue that Shawn is hitting on you.’

  ‘Exactly. I just want to grab that idiot and shake him. He’s got a girlfriend like Maggie… a real hottie and he’s after me, a girl who he knows has a boyfriend. What’s with everyone at the moment? We’ve got Mav and Holly split up because of Chelsea, we’ve got a teacher after you, although I must admit she is hot. I had a male teacher who had his eye on me and he’s a creep. You have a girl who won’t get the message that you’re not interested and now I’ve got this guy here. I really think I will have to get a T-shirt or something made up that says something like “I’m gay. If you’re a guy don’t bother!”’

  Rex chuckled and then peered off into the distance. ‘Hello, hello, is that Tucker I see over there?’

  Vanessa peered over to the shallow waters where Tucker waded through the waves.

  ‘So it is. I guess they need people like him here to generate the waves. Perhaps it’s his new calling in life? Something he can be good at.’

  ‘It may very well be.’ Rex laughed. ‘No sign of your Internet hottie yet?’

  ‘Nuh uh, not yet. I guess she didn’t have the courage to show up.’

  ‘Well you never know. She could be here somewhere in this building, but as her real self, not the one she’s pretending to be.’

  ‘Well I hope she’s for real. She seems sincere.’

  ‘Well I hope she’s not some adult pretending to be a teenaged girl.’

  ‘Don’t worry. If this girl is really an adult, then she’s a really retarded one. By the way, I see Jaspy over there is watching you like a hawk.’

  Rex glanced over to see her paddling about ten metres away. He sighed. ‘I wish Holly hadn’t volunteered to give her a lift here.’

  ‘Oh well,’ Vanessa said. ‘I guess Holly just doesn’t know your type like I do.’

  Nadia swam up to them and took hold of the side of the mat. ‘Hey, Rex. What was the name of that gang you’ve had trouble with?’

  ‘The Wild Dogs.’

  ‘Well I was just at the café having a drink and looked down the road to check out your car. There’s a couple of gang members there looking over your car. Look like they had pictures of dogs on the back of their leather jackets.’

  ‘Oh, no,’ Vanessa said, noticing the wide-eyed look on Rex’s face. ‘I hope they don’t realise that’s your car.’

  Rex’s eyes narrowed. ‘Well they’re not gonna touch my car. I’m going out there.’

  ‘Wait!’ Vanessa said. ‘I’ll come too.’

  ‘Oh no,’ Rex said. ‘I don’t want you anywhere near those guys. I’ll deal with them.’

  ‘He’s right,’ Nadia said. ‘We should stay.’

  Rex slipped off the mat, swam to the side of the pool and leapt out.

  ‘I can’t just stay here,’ Vanessa said. ‘We should at least watch form the distance. Make sure he’s alright. Some of those guys carry knives.’

  ‘Yeah, ok. Come on.’ The two of them swam to the side and climbed out. ‘Hold on.’ Nadia grabbed her towel first and rummaged through her gear. Seconds later she joined Vanessa and they hurried out to the café, but just as they reached the entrance, Shawn intercepted them. ‘It’s ok, the Dogs have gone.’

  ‘Where’s Rex?’ Vanessa asked.

  ‘He’s down there checking on his car. Don’t worry. You had better stay in here. If you come back, the café manager may think you’re trying to get in here without paying.

  ‘Are you sure they’re gone?’

  ‘Yeah, they left just as Nadia went in looking for you.’

  Nadia walked through into the cafeteria. Vanessa tried to walk in after her, but Shawn clutched her arm. ‘Wait.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘It’s ok, honestly. Actually I wanted to catch you alone for a minute.’

  Vanessa’s eyes narrowed. She began to wonder whether this was some kind of a setup to get her away from Rex for a few minutes.

  ‘What do you want, Shawn? Why don’t you go find Maggie? She was really looking forward to seeing you today and hanging out with you.’

  ‘Oh, there’s plenty of time for that.’ His voice softened. ‘I was kinda hoping you and I might be able to spend some time together.’

  The alarm bells inside her head almost deafened her. This was a set up. He did want her alone and probably right now, Nadia was out there with Rex taking advantage of the fact that she wasn’t around. ‘Shawn. I need to fill you in on a very important detail, ok? I’m not actually into you at all. In fact, I am so far from in-to-you that you might as well say I’m orbiting the earth’s atmosphere preparing to make the jump to hyperspace. You’re the boyfriend of one of my best friends and actually it bothers me that you’re not giving her the respect she deserves.’

  ‘Huh? Hey, wait a minute, I haven’t made any promises to Maggie. Don’t get me wrong, she’s a fantastic girl and we have a lot of fun together, but it’s not like we’re going steady or anything.’

  ‘You’re not? Well that’s sort of funny, because she thinks you are.’

  ‘Ah geez, look, the last thing I want to do is hurt her, but I just can’t see us two lasting the distance. I need someone more with-it, you know? Someone who isn’t so naïve. Man, you are just so gorgeous and smart. A guy would have to be crazy to not try to take their opportunit
ies when they get one.’

  ‘Shawn, you may not realise this, but you don’t have any opportunities. This is not even a remote possibility. In fact, your chances are actually in negative figures, that’s how utterly incredibly doomed to failure your effort is in this matter. You have to know, I am totally dedicated to Rex, alright?’

  ‘Ah, come on. You’re dedicated to him? So what’s with Nadia all over him like a rash then, huh? You didn’t seem to mind that. Seems like maybe he’s not all that into you.’

  Vanessa did her best to hold back her ever-building ire. ‘Shawn, you don’t seem to be getting the message. Give up while you’re ahead. Focus on Maggie, or leave both of us alone.’

  ‘Hey, babe, I’m not just gonna give up. The first moment I saw you I felt something, and I think you felt it too.’

  She stared at him in disbelief. ‘My, God… And here was me thinking Tucker Pyles was living in a world of delusion.’

  ‘Who’s Tucker Pyles?’

  ‘It doesn’t matter.’ She sighed. She didn’t really want to have to tell him this, simply because Maggie feared his reaction, but she felt she had no choice. ‘Ok, here’s another little bit of information that may shake you out of your fantasy world. I’m a lesbian. I’m into girls not guys.’

  Shawn burst out laughing. ‘Ho, boy. This is great. You’re getting desperate. Trying to tell me that you’re gay?’ Vanessa stared at him as he continued to laugh. ‘Quite clearly you’re not. Otherwise you wouldn’t be all over Rex.’

  ‘I…’

  ‘Now I know that you’re into me. You’re playing hard to get.’

  ‘No, Shawn. I don’t play games like that. What you’re mistaking for a game is actually me being completely serious.’

  Shawn continued to laugh. ‘You’re good. You’re really good. But I’m not buying it, babe. Ah, come on, don’t worry about Maggie. She’ll be fine. We’ve got a pretty casual relationship really. She’s not gonna get pissed if you and I see each other from time to time.’

  Vanessa found it very difficult now to control her temper. ‘I’ve had enough of this.’ She went to walk past him to go into the café, but Shawn grabbed her arm again.

  ‘Wait, babe, wait.’

  ‘No!’ Vanessa snapped. ‘Get your hand of me now or I’ll go right out there now and tell Maggie all about this conversation. Is that what you want?’

  Shawn released her and shrunk back. ‘No way. Hey, I was only kidding around. No need to tell her. You’ll only upset her.’

  ‘Really? A moment ago you were saying she wouldn’t mind. Goodbye.’ She walked towards the café again, ready this time in case he tried to grab her arm again. He didn’t.

  Once in the café she saw no sign of either Rex or Nadia. She peered through the windows down the road to the Lamborghini, but there was no sign of anyone apart from a couple of young kids admiring it. She considered the fact that maybe they had both re-entered the pools through them main entrance, so headed back inside to see if they were there. They were nowhere to be seen.

  ‘Damn it,’ hissed Vanessa. ‘That Nadia. She’s lured him away somewhere.’